Bertrada of Laon

Bertrada of Laon
Queen consort of the Franks
Tomb of Bertrada of Laon at the Saint Denis Basilica
Spouse(s)	Pepin the Short
Father	Charibert of Laon
Born	between 710 and 727
Died	12 July 783(783-07-12) Choisy-au-Bac
Buried	Saint Denis Basilica

Bertrada of Laon (born between 710 and 727 – 12 July 783), also known as Bertrada the Younger or Bertha Broadfoot (cf. Latin: Regina pede aucae i.e. the queen with the goose-foot), was a Frankish queen. She was the wife of Pepin the Short and the mother of Charlemagne, Carloman and Gisela.

Bertrada's nickname "Bertha Broadfoot" dates back to the 13th century, when it was used in Adenes Le Roi's trouvère Li rouman de Berte aus grands piés. The exact reason that Bertrada was given this nickname is unclear. It is possible that Bertrada was born with a clubfoot, although Adenes does not mention this in his poem. The nickname might have been a reference to an ancient legend about a Germanic goddess named Perchta, to real and mythological queens named Bertha, or to several similarly-named Christian queens. Many myths and legends exist in Europe and Asia, in which clubfooted people are described as the link between the world of the living and the spirit world.

Bertrada was born sometime between 710 and 727 in Laon, in today's Aisne, France, to Count Charibert of Laon. Charibert's father might have been related to Hugobertides. Charibert's mother was Bertrada of Prüm, who founded Prüm Abbey along with Charibert. Bertrada of Prüm was possibly the daughter of Theuderic III.

Bertrada Broadfoot of Laon

Bertrada of Laon

Bertrada married Pepin the Short, the son of Charles Martel, the Frankish "Mayor of the Palace", in 741. However, Pepin and Bertrada were too closely related for their marriage to be legal at that time; the union was not canonically sanctioned until 749, after the birth of Charlemagne.